


Dead Ends

by cali_sunshine



Category: Dangan Ronpa - All Media Types, Dangan Ronpa: Trigger Happy Havoc
Genre: Attempted Murder, Disembowelment, Happy Halloween!, Horror, Murder, Psychological Horror, Stalking
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-10-20
Updated: 2018-10-20
Packaged: 2019-08-05 00:08:17
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence, Major Character Death
Chapters: 1
Words: 6,198
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/16356848
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/cali_sunshine/pseuds/cali_sunshine
Summary: Makoto Naegi begins to have recurring dreams featuring Sayaka Maizono, and after those dreams, things start to grow eerie in the home he shares with his three roommates. They begin drilling into his room and spying on him. Desperate to be free from their silent and piercing gaze, Makoto sets out to live with someone else. On his way, he encounters a few dead ends.





	Dead Ends

**Author's Note:**

> so this is my first "serious" story, and i wrote it in one day so it probably has a lot of issues  
> im not a very good writer, but i wanted to make something legit cause i had to wait so long for this account  
> this concept and main plot was originally by juji ito! please go watch the anime or read the manga, it's very good, especially around halloween  
> please enjoy!  
> (warning: vomit mention)

I was once told when I was younger by my sister that if you whisper into someone’s ear while they sleep, you’ll be able to get into their subconscious and take control of their dream. I’ve kept that thought with me, curious on if it was real. I mean, my good friend Hina always told me if you wrote someone’s name on your hand three times… you’re basically guaranteed to remember it! Not to mention my other friend Hagakure, who lived off of weird myths and aura… things? (I’ve never really gotten it.) Either way, the thought of what Komaru told me hid in the back of my mind throughout this fall.

I’ve had recurring dreams. Dreams of the Ultimate Pop Idol standing near me in a pink and cloudy area. She’d hold a pretty pink box, smiling shyly and glancing in my direction as I stared off in the distance.

_ “Makoto?” She looked at the back of my head, her voice tiny, a tone unnatural to a pop idol. I turned around curiously, looking at the little box for a second. _

_ “Hm? What’s up Sayaka?” I kept my facial expression soft, smiling to encourage her as the pink clouds floated slowly. _

_ She closed her eyes and tilted her head, moving the box to be hidden behind her blue skirt. “Just wanted to say hello!” She chirped. _

I’d walk with Leon to school. Telling him day after day how Sayaka would appear in my dreams and talk to me. Always in that warm and comfy place, I felt safe there. He’d look at me weird, more and more disgust behind his eyes as the days went on.

_ Leon put a hand behind his bright red hair, “She’s doing that weird shit! Whispering into your ears while you sleep so that you think of her… ‘Aristotle Theory’ bullshit.”  _

_ I sighed, looking at my dirtied sneakers. “I mean… I’ve known Sayaka since middle school Leon.” A small smile crept its way onto my face as I recalled nostalgic memories. “She wouldn’t sneak into my room and do that stuff.” _

_ Leon rolled his eyes and kept walking. “I swear to god if you mention a dream again tomorrow…” _

I never really believed such a claim; Sayaka Maizono, the Ultimate Pop Sensation… climbing into my room to whisper into my ear. It made me shiver. But that night, I walked home to go see my house roommates. Byakuya Togami, Kyoko Kirigiri, and Mukuro Ikusaba. They were gathered around the table in a still silence, sitting formally with their hands resting on their knees. I threw my backpack down and joined them.

“Leon says someone is breaking into my room,” I said bluntly, sitting at my seat. My shoulders lazily drooped as the three of them stared at me. “Um, it’s about ‘Aristotle Theory’.”

It stayed silent at the table. They shared a look of arched and lowered eyebrows, and nonblinking emptiness that I found myself used to.

“I’ve heard voices,” Mukuro spoke, barely above a whisper in a room so deathly quiet. “At night, in your room. I hear a girl’s voice.”

I got up from my seat as they all stared at me, beginning to sweat. My muscles tensed as I grabbed my bag and rushed up the stairs, they creaked loudly under my feet. My shoes squeaked against the wooden floor as I reached the dark upstairs, blue wallpaper with its thin coat of dirt surrounding me. There was always such a sense of darkness, but I never took such intense notice until now. I opened the door to my room, threw down my bag, and began my homework in hope of forgetting the anxiety that slowly filled me.

Time passed and with it came my roommates. The brown tint of my window made the night sky look like it had been filled with a disgusting oil. Minutes passed as I stared at my wall and sat at my desk. I long ago finished my work, but in my hand, I kept my dull pencil. In front of me lay empty pieces of paper, and on the ground my sneakers and textbooks sat. I stared and stared, the silence became deafening as terrible thoughts filled my mind. How dare I doubt Sayaka like this! She would never do that… even if Mukuro said she had heard her. I knew Sayaka, I knew--

My thoughts were cut short by the sound of drilling. I instantly got up and out of my chair. “H-Hello!?” I called out, starring as the drill bit whirled into my wall. 

Nobody answered, they just kept drilling until a small hole was made. I stood completely still, hearing shuffling from the other side. The whirring came back, and with it came a new hole in my wall. I shook my head quickly, then leaned forwards on my desk to look inside the hole. I was met with a gray eye.

I gasped, retaliating in fear and confusion. The gray-eyed girl took it as another chance to drill a peephole. I peeked inside again after the drill bit was once again pulled out of my wall from the other side, the same gray eye was staring back at me. Mukuro.

I quickly grabbed the clean pieces of paper and ripped them into small squares, grabbing hastily torn tape. I shoved the pieces against the holes in the walls, rubbing my thumb along the tape as I sighed. After hearing more shuffling from the other side, I sat down to calm myself. Admittedly, they had done this before. Curious stares and watching of my every move when I thought I was alone. I never understood why.

My thoughts were broken again when a finger tore through the paper. It moved restlessly and quick, searching for where I was. I reflexively shrieked, shoved the pencil in my pocket, picked up a textbook, and slammed it against the finger. 

Mukuro let out a groan of pain from behind the wall. I pulled away the textbook, and the finger slithered away. I held my hand close to my mouth.

“I’m sorry Mukuro! I didn’t mean to do that!” I forced a friendlier tone. I didn’t expect any type of response, so it wasn’t a surprise when she didn’t do anything to reply. 

I sighed, trying to calm myself. Putting more tape over the hole Mukuro ripped in the paper. 

_ It would be fine, this wasn’t harmful to me in any way. They cared about me, they wanted to see how I was doing! I shouldn’t have hurt Mukuro like that. _

Guilt weighed on my shoulders as I got out of my chair and began to walk to my door in hopes I remembered to lock it again. My attention went to my closet, where the door creaked and I could see the reflection of square glasses and the obvious length of a hair braid.

Byakuya and Kyoko were sitting in my closet, watching me this whole time. I grew shaky again, staring back at them in this unbearable quiet that filled the air and weighed on me like a bag of bricks.

“Byakuya, Kyoko, get out please!” I rushed to the door and flung it open, the two’s eyes followed me. Unblinking and lifeless as they just looked at me open the door.

“Respect my privacy guys,” I said again, walking over to the closet door and sliding it open. They looked up at me, their faces covered with shadows and the natural dirt of our house.

Two minutes passed, then five, then ten. Absolutely nothing from either of them. I ran out of options after I attempted to yank Kyoko to her feet and she didn’t move an inch. She was stiff as a board and heavy as a corpse. I feared trying to do so with Byakuya, as he used to be so prone to getting mad at anyone for little things. Nowadays, he didn’t have much of a personality.

Twenty minutes and I simply gave up. I walked out of my room and grabbed a privacy screen or two to place around my bed. One of those weird Japanese screens that people see in dojo type of places. I tried to ignore the piercing feeling of Byakuya and Kyoko’s eyes as I set it up and climbed inside, firmly closing it behind me. For extra measure, I duct taped it to my wall. 

…

I heard the closet door shift open, then the quiet footsteps of the two. I held my breath, sitting down on my bed so they wouldn’t be able to see me behind the cheap screens. Silence and silence, the common occurrence that wore on me more and more. Kyoko’s boots clicked against the floor and soon came Togami’s as I heard them walk out of my room. 

I thought I could relax, but then came noises from above. They were on the roof. I heard the familiar noise of the drill whirling and got up again to stand on my bed. I grabbed my pencil, kept in my pocket from where I was at my desk. The whirring grew louder, and then the drill bit grew visible. Grabbing my pencil, I jammed it up the hole, preventing any fingers from coming out as Mukuro did earlier.

Instead of what I expected, I heard a shriek as glasses fell against the hole. Footsteps were loud as they rushed off the roof, Kyoko’s boots clicking behind and softly. I kept the pencil jammed in the small hole, I needed to sleep and I couldn’t stand to be stared at any longer.

Finally, finally, finally! I let out a huge sigh of relief and climbed under my covers. After all of that, I felt even more tired than before. It was a Friday night, I could rest until whenever I want tomorrow morning. I stared at the ceiling, then finally felt my eyelids become heavy.

_ “Makoto!” Sayaka called, she ran up to me from the beautiful cloudy area. _

_ I waved back to her. “Hi Sayaka!” _

_ She giggled, hugging me quickly before pulling away and holding her box behind her skirt. “How was your day today? You seem tired…” Sayaka looked genuinely concerned, I sheepishly responded. _

_ “Just… living with roommates! You know how it is…” I laughed, rubbing the back of my neck. “How are you?” _

_ Sayaka nodded. “I’m good, just thinking about something…” Her arm shifted from behind her. _

_ “Wanna tell me?” I gave her a friendly nudge. _

_ “Well…” She blushed, stepping away from me and reaching out from behind her. She began to speak to me, but I couldn’t focus on it. I would glance at her, then at this blurry purple thing standing behind her. I glanced down at her again, turning back in her conversation to ignore the purple figure that stood far behind. It was getting closer, but perhaps it was just a cloud. _

_ “I was thinking maybe we could…” She smiled, pulling out the jewelry box, keeping it closed between her two hands. It slowly opened, I focused intensely on her smiling face. “Makoto I… I….” A shiny ring was visible, focus, focus, FOCUS. “I love--”  _

_ Sayaka was stabbed in the back, her blood leaked onto the ground as the shiny ring flew out of the box and onto the ground. The blood seeped into my sneakers, dots began to stain my hoodie and pants. I screamed, looking at the corpse, and then up at who committed such an act. Purple. They wore black, had long purple hair, yet piercing red eyes that left me with a never-ending sense of no way of being safe. I screamed, screamed, screamed, screamed… Sayaka’s blood leaked, leaked, leaked, leaked… _

I woke up screaming at the top of my lungs that morning, my head hurting tremendously. The thought of Sayaka’s blood continuing to spill out of her body, soaking right into my shoes and into the beautiful ring she bought. Holding my head, I began to pant. It was too much, all too much. I just… needed a second to calm down. 

Deep breaths, in and out, in and out… I opened my eyes after my attempt to calm down, turning to sneak out of my makeshift protection from the neverending peepholes my roommates made in my walls. Next to me lay an empty pink jewelry box, a pretty one. 

I shrieked again, realizing that that was definitely the little box Sayaka had with her in my dreams. I realized I didn’t want to stay in this hell, this screened in hell of screaming and dreams. I looked up to peel away the duct tape, past the holes that were ripped in the screen overnight. Those weren’t the big thing on my mind, I needed to get downstairs and talk to my roommates.

I tore off the duct tape, not caring that it took some cheap and dirty paint with it. I pushed down the screen, standing up and starting to walk to my door. As I walked, my shaky adventure downstairs was interrupted by the smell of rotting meat. Right in my room. Walking past the now torn paper that was taped to my wall, I cautiously moved towards the closed closet. My heart thumped loudly in my chest, getting louder and louder as I tiptoed to the closet I had been using for almost two years now. I placed a shaky hand on the door and slid it open. 

What lay in my closet was the remains of Sayaka Maizono. She had been disemboweled, which explained the horrible stench of rotting flesh that filled my room. Her blood was still wet, soaking into the floorboards and into the few clothes I had in my closet. I found myself staring in pure shock at her face. Eyes wide open, mouth agape. It wasn’t until I looked down to really see her spilled guts that I screamed again, stopping for a second and swallowing back the vomit in my mouth. I slid the closet door closed as quickly as I could, shutting my eyes tightly and trying to forget as the smell of rotting meat eerily wafted away. I opened my eyes for a quick second, my vision still blurry as I flung the door to the right. A blob of red and blue stayed, but I decided it was just clothes and this was all because of my throbbing headache. I stopped in the hallway while I was on my way downstairs, staring in an old mirror to force myself to fit the emotionless norms of my roommates. It took about forty minutes until I wiped away any excess tears and put on a mask of pure nothingness.

The stairs creaked like usual, and there the three were. Sitting formerly at the table as they ate breakfast. Bitter faces were worn by Mukuro and Byakuya, who wore new bandages. Kyoko starred emptily at her toast.

I sat down. “Mukuro, I’m so so sorry about your finger, I never meant to do that.” I looked over at her with a sincere want to make up.

“I jammed it into a door, don’t worry.” She responded flatly, not making eye contact.

I hesitated, about to say something to her again. It was best if I didn’t. Instead, I turned over to Byakuya. His left eye was bandaged, his glasses nowhere in sight.

“Byakuya, I’m so sorry about your eye. As well as your glasses, if there’s anything--”

“I had tripped, my glasses broke. A piece of glass from said glasses fell in and ruined my left eye.” He responded, much like Mukuro with no expression except a tint of bitterness and anger as he refused to glance at me. 

I nodded quietly, allowing them to put me down and ignore me. It felt funny, they refused to look at me this morning, but this morning I found so many new holes in my walls and ceiling. Deafening quiet as nobody spoke, all I heard was the noises of Mukuro chewing her cereal and Byakuya tapping his foot. My head began to hurt more, and I had to go back to my room and lay down.

“I’m sorry, I’m going to return to bed,” I said, smiling anxiously at Kyoko. 

She looked up from her plate and stared deep into my eyes. Her mouth didn’t so much as twitch as I slowly backed up and began to walk up the stairs. The numb thuds wearing on me.

I opened my door,  ignoring the blurry sight of red in my closet as I rushed over to my bed and lay down. I grabbed my head and closed my eyes, the pain grew unbearable. I heard my door open but was so focussed on keeping my head from exploding that I ignored it. Eventually, I fell asleep.

_ Nothing. There was nothing around me. No clouds, no Sayaka, no murderer, no box. I was alone in the blackness of my dreams.  _

I awoke again in the evening, around 6pm. My eyes stayed closed, my grip on my forehead gone as I was asleep. Finally, my body relaxed and my eyes opened. I blinked away my blurry vision and was able to look around in the slight darkness around me. To the side of the bed they stood; Byakuya, Kyoko, and Mukuro. Staring emptily at me as I awoke. I jumped, not expecting them to be there. It was then that I realized my closet door had been jammed closed with the screen I used to protect myself last night. More holes plagued my walls. I decided I wasn’t going to live like this. There was no way I would deal with the staring.

I got up, pushing Byakuya out of my way so I could grab my backpack. “I’m going to stay with someone else.” I faked my confidence, on the inside I felt like I would burst into tears and scream until my face turned red at the same time. I didn’t know who to visit, but I had to leave this cursed house. I felt the piercing look of them but kept walking. I ran down the stairs, ripped open the door and ran to the bus stop to see when it would come. I realized as I was rushing out of the house that there was a place I knew I could be safe. Taka’s house. 

Kiyotaka Ishimaru was the Ultimate Moral Compass, he would treat me right and respect my privacy, I’d just have to follow his rules. I looked at the bus sign in search of a time that would take me to Saito, the town in which he lived. 

**‘PUBLIC TRANSPORTATION INCLUDING BUSES, TAXIS, AND TRAINS HAVE BEEN CANCELLED UNTIL FURTHER NOTICE. WE APOLOGIZE FOR ANY INCONVENIENCE.’**

A moment of panic flew over me as I finished reading this and looked down at the house I just ran out of, I inhaled and exhaled slowly, it would be okay. I would walk! I knew the routes to all my friend’s homes. So I just adjusted my backpack and began the familiar walk to Taka’s house.

The sound of my sneakers hitting the stone walkways filled my brain as I put most of my energy on forgetting everything I saw the past days in that house. I smiled, however, thinking of the future. Maybe I could bring Taka back here and he could talk to my roommates? That seemed like a good idea. The walk was calming, I enjoyed being able to be alone and just think about insignificant things for as long as I wanted. The pitter-patter came to a stop when I realized a large wooden structure blocked off a road. I stared at it, blinking in confusion. It looked like a wooden…. house? Surely I was on the right road… I looked at the street signs in confusion, then back at the house blocking my way. I didn’t expect to find any dead ends on my journey.

A girl about my age stood with a mask on, it was white and elegant, she wore a short and black dress that matched her modest black flats and stockings well. Her purple hair was tied up into braids that were then tied into a bun. She looked at me. 

“Y-You can’t get through there... “ 

I turned around and stared. “Huh? Why not?”

She grabbed her head, angry. “Stupid! I-It’s someone’s house… it’s indestructible… y-y-you’ve gotta walk through it. Follow me... I k-know the detour.” I could tell she was glaring harshly through her mask as I followed close behind her.

Masked people began to walk by us casually. A short guy who wore a red apron and a pig mask, a tall and muscular girl who wore a bird mask with flower designs, a bubbly girl with multiple colors in her horned hair who wore a cat mask that looked rather childish. I found it incredibly intriguing, people passing by with these unique masks. Admittedly, I felt a bit weird without one.

The girl led me to another wooden structure where people in those masks were screaming and rioting. 

“Open the door, foolish mortals!” A pale man wore a hamster mask, screaming in the crowd.

“Dumbasses!” A pink haired guy added on.

“Open!” A red-headed girl said.

“NOW!” “You can’t just close the door on us." "Have you got NO respect for others!?" The crowd yelled over eachother.

I watched in fear as anger came over the crowd, I glanced over at the purple haired girl leading me. She seemed unphased. “W-When they finally get this s-s-stupid door open… walk through.”

I nodded quietly and continued to watch.

Finally, a tall guy with a pompadour ran up to the door and began to bust it open. He yelled and yelled, and surely people began helping him. The door fell down, and the resident inside screamed for their life as everyone rushed in.

The girl walked in casually, I stayed back to wait for the crowd to leave. I could hear them hurting the poor person who lived inside. Screaming and aggression made the air heavy, and I hated hearing it. As soon as they began to walk away from the now tied up person, I rushed inside to help. 

It was a woman bearing choppy purple hair, she was crying, tied to a pole in her own home by the people I witnessed break down the door. I ran over to her as she screamed, expecting me to hit her as well. I began to untie the ropes, and her expression softened. She adjusted her rabbit mask and calmed down.

“T-Thank you…” She whimpered, wiping her face from the blood and bruises left by the crowd. “I’m so sorry, I just… h-had to lock my door! I cannot s-s-stand these new rules…”

I tilted my head. “New rules?”

“T-This is my home. Those people added the rules of… being able to pass through anytime they w-want to… I can’t stand it!” She held her hands close to her face constantly, sitting on the floor. I joined her.

“I get it.” I smiled at her, she smiled faintly back.

“T-Thank you for helping me, stranger… My name is Mikan…” She looked at the floor. “I-is it too personal to ask where you are heading? Y-You aren’t from here… I can tell because y-you have no mask…”

I looked at the bunny mask she wore, curious of its purpose. “I’m heading about three blocks from here, to a friends house.”

She flinched. “Y-You mean you’re heading to Saiko?? T-That place is full of crime and… t-t-there’s a serial killer on the loose! Please, kind s-stranger… take that mask on my t-t-table before you go…”

I looked over to the table, notably one of the only pieces of furniture she had. On top lay a small mask that was held by a stick, it was plain and boring. I got to my feet, grabbing the mask. “Thank you Mikan, my name is Makoto.”

She smiled at me again. “M-Makoto, I won’t forget that name. Thank you.”

And with that, I left Mikan’s house and continued on my way to Taka’s. Surely enough, the sky began to grow darker, and the people around me grew more and more threatening. I grew so paranoid. Like I would turn a corner and find Byakuya staring at me with Mukuro and Kyoko. I quickened my pace after a man beckoned me over with his hand. I didn’t like this part of town, I wanted to turn around. But seeing Taka and maybe rescuing him from such a terrible place would keep me going.

I crossed a bridge over a dirty and flowing river, excitement filled me once I saw his house. I began to run, strangers staring at me through their masks. I ignored them, I was going to be safe again! I was going to be able to sleep at night… 

I pushed back the sight of Maizono’s organs dangling out of her stomach and onto my floor as I reached the door. I knocked heavy and with purpose, a tear in the corner of my eye after I realized this nightmare would be over. The man who answered the door was not Kiyotaka Ishimaru.

Well, technically it was. But it was not the Taka I had known. He stood in only his underwear, without a mask. The window was wide open and he hugged me right when he saw me. I didn’t really know how to respond. It was something I always joked about during school, about a day his morals would snap, but looking at it now made me uncomfortable. His right eye was blackened and he wasn’t even wearing shoes.

“Naegi! I am so happy you came to visit me!” He smiled at me, letting me out of the hug. “Here, come in!”

I stood completely still as he walked back inside, unsure of how to react. It took a minute, but I followed him inside. He sat in a dirty old chair, in front of it was a small table that held a basket of apples, and in front of that was another dirty old chair. It seemed that these were his only left possessions, and I grew anxious. The walls were covered in an old red wallpaper, torn in many spots and completely covered in peepholes.

Everything in my brain was telling me not to sit in that chair across from him, but I did. I sat down, holding the sides of my coat in an attempt to not be so uncomfortable despite being in a friend’s presence.

Taka was staring at me. Despite the smile on his face, he lacked just as much emotion as Kyoko this morning. Nothing but empty.

“You know Makoto, it took me a long time to get used to these new rules.” He laughed.

I nodded understandably, disregarding his entire talent being that he follows the rules.

“I get it, I barely knew about it to begin with…” I looked to the side, avoiding eye contact. Silence fell on us, and I felt it was necessary to ask what was on my mind.

“Taka?” 

“Yes, Makoto?”

“Why are you naked?” I finally asked. “Put some clothes on!”

Ishimaru grew rather quiet after the question, but then he let out a cheerful and hearty laugh. “Makoto! Ha ha ha!! You humor me greatly friend!” Ishimaru closed his eyes and smiled before continuing to speak. “Let me try and explain something to you.”

I leaned in to listen, concern covering my face.

“At first I completely was against this, I fought it with all my power.” His intense stare made it hard for me to keep looking into his eyes. “I locked my doors and hid in my room upstairs in an attempt to study and keep my privacy. But…” He laughed, a masked stranger casually climbed in through the window and walked into his house. “They broke down the doors! People would climb into the second floor from the roof anyway, and my home already has so many drill holes, with more coming every day. I assure you somebody is watching us right now!” 

He held his hands out happily, looking out at one of the many peepholes. I didn’t want to look at them, I knew I would see pupils on the other side. People were surely staring at us, their piercing gaze digging into my very soul. 

“The effort to keep privacy was driving me insane.” Ishimaru’s smile faded in favor of a stern look, one I knew was used before for enforcing rules. “I let mine die. You can let yours die too.”

I shuffled uncomfortably in my seat as Ishimaru got to his feet.

“Throw away your mask and clothes, Makoto. You will be so much happier! It is like a snake, shedding out of its skin, haha!” He was moving closer to me, leaning on the table between us. Regret filled my body, I was safer home. Not by much, but safer.

“Taka… you are not the same person anymore…!” I muttered nervously, more to myself than him.

“Makoto, I have shed my skin!” Ishimaru picked up one of the apples in the basket as a new stranger strolled in his home.

“Good evening!” He said quickly, holding the apple in his left hand and wearing a smile to the stranger.

“Hey.” They boredly replied.

Ishimaru sat back down, holding the apple in one hand a newly seen knife in the other. He began to delicately carve off its skin. “Much like this apple, as I peel away the disgusting outer layer.” I watched from my seat as the skin wound and wound against the floor. Was Ishimaru the serial killer?

“Kiyotaka, I think you have lost your mind.” I stood up, holding my hands in tight fists as I stared him down.

He looked up from the apple curiously.

I shouted. “You say you do not need privacy, but I believe you have gone insane without it!”

He grew angry, familiar stubbornness gone foul as Ishimaru stood up as well. His red eyes piercing my very being. “Makoto, you do not know.” He moved closer to me, the apple in one hand and the small knife in the other. “You say this was new to you yes? So what would you know about it!? You are wasting time!” He began to shout at me “Remove your clothes and burn your mask, be like me. Without your skin.”

I backed up, glancing at the peepholes and drill bits sticking out of his walls as he moved closer to me.

“I will rip your clothes off of you, fool!” He shouted at me. “I will cut you apart and leave your body to bleed on my own floor!” 

I pushed him hard as I could, hearing him hit the floor with a harsh thud and the knife fall far behind with a clang. I ran as fast as my feet could take me outside, away from the hole-ridden home where a friend of mine used to live.

I could hear him scream in anger from behind me.

My feet continued to thump loudly against the stone walkways, passing the masked citizens. Red hair behind a mask reminded me of Leon as my pupils grew small and I looked away. I turned a corner, then another. The area around me got darker and darker as I found myself at a dead end. My pace slowed until I stopped and stared. Little holes of light peeked through the ground ahead of me, on top of them lay people.

I gasped a sigh of relief, seeing no sign of a mask. “Oh my god…” I panted, the run leaving me tired. “P-Please, help me!”

The people turned around and stared at me, the holes leaving light in dots on their faces. What I thought was simply big haircuts turned out to be their deformed and elongated heads. They lacked anything a normal person would have, all that stayed on their faces was countless eyes. The pupils looked around restlessly as my throat went hoarse from screaming. I started to turn and run again for my life. I could hear their hands and feet crawling on the sticky ground, following me. 

My legs began to grow sore as I ran, turning corners and avoiding the dead ends. Finally, I could locate something I knew, even if it was only a little bit. Standing near the river was the purple-haired girl from earlier, the back of her bun making me feel a smidge of comfort. A hesitant and terrified smile grew on my face. “It’s you from earlier... Help me, please!!” I shouted to her.

She turned to me, the same mask sitting on her face. “Y-You again? I didn’t expect to see you here…” She had her own small smile, I stopped running. Her presence calming me out fo the need.

I panted restlessly, “I’m so sorry, I just… I got here and…”

Her aggressiveness was not nearly as present now as it was before, a feeling of sincerity surrounded here as she comforted me. “It’s ok, I t-told you that it was dangerous here… but you still wouldn’t have known the e-extent right?” She raised her hand towards me, and something on her finger glistened. I stared at it in a stunned silence.

“A-Are you interested in my ring?” She laughed slightly, taking it off and holding up my hand. “Pretty r-r-right?” It slipped onto my finger without any resistance.

“And i-it fits you perfectly…”

I pulled my hand away, biting my lip and staring at her with a shaky look. That was not her ring. “Remove your mask,” I said bluntly. She looked offended.

“R-Remove my mask? Kyahaha!” She smiled wide, her tongue visible and long. I balled my hands into fists and took a step back. She grabbed her mask, then threw it to the ground harshly.

Her hair fell out of the bun, two long braids falling at her sides as she opened her eyes at me. Red. Piercing red eyes and long purple hair, behind her she readied something. 

“You…” I gasped, beginning to tremble. “You are Sayaka’s killer! G-Get away from me!”

Laughing, she pulled out a knife from behind her. “Kyahaha!” She ran towards me and grabbed he harshly, holding me still as I struggled in her arms. 

“Let me go, please! Monster! Someone help me!” I yelled.

“Nobody is coming, Makoto.” She whispered in my ear, holding the knife to my throat. I stared at it as my body stiffened and tensed. But I tightly closed my eyes and began to hyperventilate as I heard her unfittingly gentle breathing in my ears.

The knife grew closer, and she muttered to me. “Now go give the ring back to Sayaka.” I felt the cold metal on my throat and held my eyes closer together as tears fell. This was the end for me.

It was then that I heard the squishy noise of cutting flesh, then the clank of a knife on the ground. The hold on me disappeared as I opened my eyes and turned around. The girl stood still, her face showing limitless amounts of pain and paleness. Her eyes didn't pierce me any longer. I looked down, blood soaking her pretty dress as she hit the ground with a harsh thud of lifelessness. As her body fell, it made way to show someone standing behind her. Ishimaru.

He looked at me as the body fell, the blood stained on his hands as he held the same sharp knife he used on the apple and threatened me with. The look in his face was tired, restless as drips of the girl’s fresh blood had splattered on his bare chest and face.

“T-Taka…” I muttered, looking at him. “You saved me.”

He walked right past me, to the river. The knife dangled in his hands as he stared at the dirty water. He raised his arm, and the knife dropped into the water. He looked at me, vapid of emotion. Even the craziness from earlier. 

“If you would like to get out of town, just follow the river upstream.”

I looked at him in disbelief. “Taka, but… but I can’t leave you here… come with me, please!”

He said nothing, the sound of the river rapidly traveling filling the air. I stared restlessly at the back of his head. He raised a leg, then turned around completely to look at me. 

“...”

He slipped on the mud, falling backward into the river with a loud splash. 

“TAKA!” I called, outstretching my arm and rushing over. He was long gone already, the fast rapids consuming him as sharp rocks cut open his bare and unclothed body.

I stared at the water, the sound of it being anything but calming as time passed. The tears fell, then they dried. Finally, I took a deep breath and got to my feet. Mud had stained my pants as I turned away from the water and started my journey out of the town, being sure not to trip on the corpse.

**Author's Note:**

> thank you for reading and happy halloween!  
> if you want to chat, i have a tumblr of @marie-champion  
> feel free to comment


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